Cazenovia Pilot

Letter from the Cazenovia Preservation Foundation Regarding Route 20 Development

Jim Evans, the president of the Cazenovia Preservation Foundation (CPF), submitted this letter to the Cazenovia Pilot. Given the recent conversations about this topic, I hope it provides some perspective for everyone about the history of the parcel and the role of the CPF in this process.

To the Editor:

I understand that some in the community are very anxious about the nature of development to take place on the Stowell, Enders, and CPF properties on Route 20 East.

There seem to be two main concerns.

First, there is great curiosity about the particular details of proposed development. That curiosity will be satisfied in the near future. A detailed proposal from Pioneer is slated to be made public in a few short weeks, at which point reliable information will be available to everybody.

Second, there are apparently worries that following approval of one development plan Pioneer will turn around and build a big box or some other kind of unacceptable project. Frankly, this concern completely overlooks the elaborate, lengthy, and detailed process that is about to begin, including annexation, subdivision, and site plan approval. Oversight by government boards will be searching and thorough, to judge by recent experience.

As far as CPF's own role is concerned, during our long history, we have acquired numerous properties in addition to rights and easements on many others. To my knowledge, we have always handled our responsibilities as to those properties in accordance with the goals and mission of the organization, in the public interest.

We will continue to do so. Our agreement with Pioneer is subject to our right of our review and approval of their plans. Pioneer has been exhaustively briefed over several years as to our goals and requirements for the property. For our review of the plans we are fortunate to have at our disposal a number of outstandingly qualified professionals who share a deep understanding and love of Cazenovia. We will continue to strive to see that this project successfully serves the goals of our membership as well as benefitting the entire community.

We do not intend to fail.

Very truly yours,

Jim Evans
President, CPF